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Botanically, sumac is related to cashews. In the Northeast, we can find staghorn, smooth, and dwarf sumac. The berries are best picked after a dry period, as the rain will wash away the acsorbic acid-the lemoy taste. The berries tend to be covered in fine hairs, so we drain the steeped juice through coffee filters to remove any fibers and hairs. The juice is high in vitamin C, and does need a bit of sweetening to make it palatable.

probably would be a good idea to mention that some sumac is poisonous... and the thirsty reader must discern between friendly and foe sumac berries....

Don't forget that dried and crushed they're often used in savoury middle eastern dishes-really adds an extra dimension.

I recently discovered sumac when my Turkish sister-in-law used some in potato salad dressed with olive oil and lemon juice - really worth trying!

sumac makes a great, tart, refreshing drink. it stains tho!

@Karen1Monger, thanks for the tips!

@modern on long island, we did point out:

Don't worry, we are not talking about poison sumac, which is a different plant with white berries.

Fortunately, poison sumac looks very different from edible sumac. There is also helpful information about identification and foraging in the links provided in the post.

My hippie teachers in college used to make this stuff. It's sort of like Red Zinger.

I have had this before, it's delicious! You can also just chew on the seeds for a little flavor snack.

Middle eastern sumac is great on a Greek salad and some Jasmine rice! I always keep it handy in my kitchen!